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Timeline

The Triumph of the Far East Broadcasting Co.

Dan Graves, MSL

"All hail the power of Jesus' name," sang the triumphant radio crew. It
was on this day, June 4, 1948. The triumph was
a triumph of God's grace and provision.

If such a story can be said to have a precise beginning, the story of
the Far East Broadcasting company began in December, 1945. Three men,
John C. Broger, Robert H. Bowman and William J. Roberts pooled their
resources--a measly $1,000--to form a non-profit, international
Christian broadcasting company. The men had known each other a long time
and had often discussed and prayed about the possibilities.

World War II separated them. After the war, they got together again.
Although John was just back from the Pacific and his wife did not want
to see him go again, he felt that he had to as a soldier of Christ. He
hoped to get permits to broadcast in China, but the Nationalist Chinese
refused to make a decision. If Christians were allowed to broadcast,
Communists could demand the same privilege. John decided to investigate
the Philippines.

Two days after the Philippines obtained their independence, John
arrived in the islands, seeking a radio station license. It was finally
granted. With permission came an "impossible" April 14, 1948 deadline by
which the station had to be on air to show "good faith." The problems
were many. Because of the war, building materials were scarce. Frequent
typhoons interrupted the work. Power lines lay in water, threatening the
men with electrocution. Finances ran low. John was not able to get a
final extension. He had to be on the air by 8 p.m. on June 4, 1948.
Fighting traffic jams, he raced toward the transmitter and got there
just before 6 p.m. All they could do was test the transmitter during its
first broadcast. The team joined in singing "All hail the power of Jesus
name" as the engineer flicked the switch. FEBC was on the air! They wept
as they realized they had met the deadline. Two hours later, the
transmitter broke down. But it could be fixed.

Knowing that airwaves can travel where people cannot, the station
broadcast Christian messages and Bible studies. People who might
otherwise never have heard the Gospel received its light.

The Chinese Communists had mass produced and distributed radios so
that they could broadcast propaganda to their people. Thanks to this,
hundreds of thousands of Chinese could hear the Christian broadcasts.

Later, the Communist government of China refused to abide by
international broadcasting rules. A Filipino official noted that, "From
now on it will be the dog with the biggest bark that will be heard in
the international bands." The staff and friends of the Far East
Broadcasting Company started to pray for transmitters with a bigger
bark.

Some of the most powerful transmitters in the world were owned by the
United States government. God demonstrated his power by making two
available to the mission from the Office of War Information. Setting
these up closer to the Chinese mainland, they were able to blanket the
Far East with the message of Christ.

Thanks to God's work through the Far East Broadcasting Company,
native speakers spread the gospel in many Asian languages. Close to two
billion people hear the Word of God in their own tongue.